Scheduled MonumentsWalesNant Tarw Stone Circles
Prehistoric · Stone Circle

Nant Tarw Stone Circles

Breconshire, Wales
Cadw SAM BR070
Period
Prehistoric
Site type
Stone Circle
Broad class
Religious, Ritual and Funerary
Nation
Wales
Boundary

Scheduled area

© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © Cadw

Overview

History & significance

Nant Tarw Stone Circles is a prehistoric stone circle located in Wales and protected as an ancient monument by Cadw. The monument stands on bedrock of Lower Devonian age, comprising mudstone, siltstone and sandstone that formed during the Early Devonian period when this landscape lay beneath marine environments. This ancient geology provides the raw materials from which the circle's stones were sourced, their weathered surfaces bearing testament to thousands of years of exposure to the Welsh climate.

Stone circles represent one of the most significant ritual and ceremonial monuments of Bronze Age Britain, though their construction may have begun in the Neolithic period. These structures typically marked places of gathering, burial or astronomical significance. The Nant Tarw example demonstrates the enduring importance of certain landscape locations to prehistoric communities, who selected this site for their sacred purposes.

The monument's protection status under Cadw reflects its archaeological importance as evidence of Wales's prehistoric heritage. The site's survival provides valuable information about Bronze Age society, settlement patterns and the relationship between communities and their natural environment, including the geology that shaped both the landscape and the materials available to its ancient inhabitants.

Nant Tarw Stone Circles is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference BR070. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Nant Tarw Stone Circles?

Nant Tarw Stone Circles is a prehistoric stone circle located in Wales and protected as an ancient monument by Cadw. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Cadw under reference BR070.

What period does Nant Tarw Stone Circles date from?

Nant Tarw Stone Circles dates from the prehistoric period, and is classified as a stone circle. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.

Who is responsible for protecting Nant Tarw Stone Circles?

Nant Tarw Stone Circles is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by Cadw — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in Wales. The official designation reference is BR070.

What other scheduled monuments are near Nant Tarw Stone Circles?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Cerrig Duon Stone Circle (6.1 km), Deserted Settlements 800m N of Blaenau Farm (6.8 km), Carnau'r Gareg Las (7 km).

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Everything a full report reveals about Nant Tarw Stone Circles

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Nant Tarw Stone Circles's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:

Overview
An interactive map of the location with every monument and battle plotted, and a plain-language history built only from what the record holds.
Monuments
The legally protected scheduled monuments around the location, each with its period, type and significance.
Battlefields
The battles and sieges fought on this ground, mapped and set on a timeline of the wider conflict.
Roman Britain
The Roman roads, forts and towns near here, and the Iron Age people who held the land before Rome arrived.
Civil War
The Civil War fighting, garrisons and recorded militaria in this area, woven into the arc of 1642 to 1651.
Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back hundreds of millions of years.
Local Names
What the street and field names around here actually mean, and the history buried inside them.
Historical Maps
Ordnance Survey maps from the 1800s, layered over the location as it stands today.
Literature
The books, county histories, charters and archives that mention this place, quoted with their sources.
Legal
The protected sites nearby and the metal-detecting, access and treasure laws that apply to this ground.
Spotlight
A deep dive into the most remarkable, lesser-known history of the place, traced back to the record.
Target Zones
For detectorists: the most promising ground to search nearby, ranked by confidence, with what to expect.
Timeline
The whole story of the location told era by era, from prehistory to the present day.
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The ground beneath

The bedrock under Nant Tarw Stone Circles

Nant Tarw Stone Circles stands on Lower Devonian Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Early Devonian. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.